The Future of Healthcare is Everywhere

Originally Published MDDI September 2002

EDITOR'S PAGE

The coming revolution in pervasive computing may be closer than most of us realize—and it is likely to have a profound impact on healthcare and the medical device industry.

Though it has taken years to get to this point, all the signs suggest that society is on the verge of a revolution in pervasive computing. Computers have already had a profound impact on the medical device industry. But until recently, this influence has been limited by the form factor of computers. When we think of computers, we still tend to think of a box.

A spate of press releases that have recently crossed our desks at MD&DI lead us to think this is all about to change. News about pervasive computing—hardware, software, and wireless technologies integrated into every aspect of our daily lives, from appliances to clothing—is now, well, everywhere.

The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) will be hosting its third annual conference on pervasive computing on October 1–2, in Gaithersburg, MD. The focus this year will be on healthcare applications. The uses of the technology that will be examined are very much here-and-now: palmtop patient data tracking, pervasive patient record systems, clinical application calculators, and device connectivity. More information on the conference is available at www.nist.gov.

Not much farther out will be healthcare applications involving wearable computers. According to a study released this September by Venture Development Corp. (Natick, MA; www.vdc-corp.com), the market for wearable computers is about to explode. In 2001, worldwide shipments totaled $70 million; in 2006,they are projected to exceed $550 million—a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 51%. While the healthcare segment of this market is fairly small, VDC's lead analyst, Tim Shea, told us that the segment's CAGR is forecast to exceed 115% through 2006. "Although there will be usage of wearable computing in different form factors," he said, "we felt the most likely adopted form factor will be clothing based (interactive textiles or 'smart fabrics'), which will provide biomonitoring capabilities. The use of head-mounted displays for augmented reality applications, such as assisting complex surgical procedures, will also grow in the coming years."

Exploring some of these applications, especially the more advanced ones, will be the goal of the Future of Health Technology Summit 2002, to be held October 28–30 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Laboratory. The event is organized by the Future of Health Technology Institute (www.fhti.org).

According to the press release announcing the summit, "in the future . . . we will live among computers and electronic appliances that are imbedded in us and many of the things we use, and [they] will be capable of recognizing potential illnesses and reducing stress. Our homes would monitor our health. Beds would analyze sleep patterns. Showers would contain sensors scanning for skin cancer and moles."

Lest this seem too futuristic, the release goes on to say that "already, researchers at MIT's Media Laboratory such as Rosalind W. Picard are developing equipment such as computers, telephones, cars, eyeglasses – even jewelry – capable of signaling increases in stress. 'In the future, when you want to know something about what's going on with your body, it will be as easy as looking at your watch,' says Picard."

Such is the pace of development in this field that this last statement was already outdated on the day it was released. The day before, on August 27, we received a press release from Cygnus (Redwood City, CA), announcing that FDA had approved the company's blood-glucose monitoring GlucoWatch device for use by children with diabetes. The noninvasive device, which looks like a large digital watch, was first approved in March 2001 for use by adults.

The future of pervasive, wearable computers is here for healthcare. If you want to learn how the medical devices you work on may be affected, we recommend that you explore some of the resources mentioned above.

The Editors

Copyright ©2002 Medical Device & Diagnostic Industry